Tragedy of the Red Spider Lily
by bluedog96
Summary: The raid at Anteiku destroyed everyone's lives. Family, friends, and lovers died on that day and a peace was lost. However, three years later, a new surge of murders unlike any before surge through the wards of Tokyo. The only clue lies with investigator Amon but it was lost along with the man's fragile sanity. One word provides a clue: "Hollow"
1. Chapter 1

Things weren't supposed to end like this! The chain rattling on his chest, the corpse lying by the side, the _infuriating_ investigator casually plucking the kakuhou from his corpse like some kind of morbid, sickening prize with a calm arrogance.

_Broken_ _and breakable._

He discarded his weaknesses yet he saved no one. Hide was dead because he failed. Touka lost her only place to live peacefully. The manager—the man who had shown Kaneki kindness in a corrupt world—Yoshimura, had probably died at the hands of the investigators. Marred hands clutched at the white strands of hair. Everything he had ever worked for, every horrible act he committed—pointless. The peace he desired—gone in an instant.

_Shaken and unraveled._

Aogiri should be eliminated. The CCG should be eliminated. Kaneki's trembling stopped and allowed his shaking hands to limply fall to his lap. Rize's ethereal form embraced Kaneki, a smirk resting on her lips. Kaneki leant back into the familiar warmth provided by his mind's insanity.

_What do you think now, Kaneki? Did you surpass me?_

No. A mistake. This had all been a mistake. No one would know the fate of the shy, cowardly bookworm Kaneki. No one would mourn the death of a ghoul. No family would be there to bury his corpse—to mark his existence. There would be nobody left to remember the other ghouls who had fallen to the vicious cycle of the world.

_A mistake? But didn't you say surpassing me would _Not _be a mistake?_

The unmistakable sound of a chain rattled and pain lanced through Kaneki's chest; however, Yamori's torture made most pain nothing more than a pinprick.

_**Hypocrite.**_

What?

"It's not my fault," Kaneki bit out in agitation. The specter of madness placed a gentle kiss to his lips. Black sclera and crimson irises—a ghoul's true nature. Fitting that his madness would take such a form.

_**No? Then I guess this will be the last time you see me Kaneki**_**.**

Kaneki grasped his chest in agony as white-hot pain incomparable to anything he had felt before ripped at his fragile mind. Fire! Why did it hurt so bad? He was dead so he shouldn't be able to feel pain but this was so much worse than the time with Yamori. What was a thousand minus seven?

"**Nine-hundered and ninety-three."**

Eh? Was his voice distorted last time he went insane? Ah but this felt different from his kagune. Were those screams coming from him? Detachedly, Kaneki watched the white, suffocating liquid crawl and mold over his vision. He had to remove the thing on his face or he wouldn't be able to breathe!

Bony fingers dug beneath the forming mask and pulled. The damned thing refused to move from his face and, for the first time in a while, Kaneki experienced true, unadulterated terror. This terror, different from facing a challenging foe or fearing for his life, forced his calm form to shake. Adrenalin surged in his veins as Kaneki fought against the white substance. Instinctually, Kaneki knew if he lost this fight then he would lose _everything_.

What made him the human and the ghoul "Kaneki Ken" would vanish and crumble like fallen leaves on an autumn morning. Panic bubbled in his chest, a bubbling laughter that accompanied the torturous insanity, and erupted in a screech of finality.

"NO! **DON**'T TA**KE THEM!"**

Hide's goofy but forever accepting smile flashed through his mind. Hide, whose blood was on his hands. He didn't deserve it. For the sake of Kaneki's selfishness…he…he…! Kaneki refused to finish the thought as he followed Hide's form to the familiar hill by the riverside. "Hide!"

"Kaneki," Hide turned and Kaneki winced at the tears trailing down Hide's cheeks, "how could you do that to me?"

"N-no. I just—!"

"There you go making excuses again."

"He's right you know." Kaneki yelped as Touka materialized right beside Hide. "You said you wouldn't leave me. Liar."

"Traitor." Hinami appeared beside the duo.

Next, Kouto and Kei. "How could you let us die? Just because you didn't want it on your conscious?"

"No. No…go away! Leave me alone! I didn't…I only wanted to protect you! Can't you see it was necessary?!" Kaneki screamed as his body stretched and his limbs twisted into claws. **"Go AWAY!"** Kaneki roared and swatted away the bugs standing around him. His eye caught the vile smirk of Rize before she, too, vanished in the force of his rage.

Darkness enclosed his vision. Kaneki could feel the soft pattering of rain upon pavement. His body felt heavy. An ocean pressed down on his limbs—made it hard to breathe—and agony raged in his chest. He needed something to soothe the ache.

**You know what you want.**

But he didn't want to accept the outcome.

**Your kindness was what killed you.**

Instead of Rize's warm embrace, a cold chill swept through him.

**Allow me to help you. **

….

**A/N: So I was wondering why no one decided to use this gold mine and a plot bunny hit me despite not finishing Bleach. This started as a tease ron AO3 but I decided to finally cross-post this. **

**The prologue wasn't beta'ed but the second chapter will be!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Beta: SilversunnyD (You should check out Silver's stories! They're great!)**

**Thanks so much for looking over this and giving suggestions!**

…

"How is everything going?" Akira Mado remained vigilant by the CCG's infirmary ward. A pristine room set aside for emergency patients and the severely disabled, the infirmary ward held hope for families and friends of the CCG investigators. However, Akira held no such idealistic ideas. Something—she had no clue exactly what that something was—rampaged through the buildings with more force than any ghoul could ever carry out. Then, the CCG investigators found an executive Aogiri ghoul's corpse right beside a shivering Amon.

The gore and blood in the clearing initially disgusted Akira. But, after gathering her wits, Akira's second, prioritized emotion centered on the man strapped to the bed in the tiny white room. Amon's psyche shattered on that day under some unseen force unknown by the rest of the CCG. Perhaps, in his current state of mind, they would never know. For such a threat to reduce a strong willed man to a trembling disaster…she hoped she would never encounter it.

The threat disappeared as soon as it arrived so Akira needed to focus on recovery efforts. CCG's counter defense against Aogiri's onslaught needed to be restored, new recruits trained, and a new way to fight the ghouls developed. The raid against Anteiku and Aogiri had shown them how weak humans truly were. They lost the majority of their forces to take down a single, hole in the wall ghoul coffee shop. Her eyes wandered over to the form fighting to escape the doctor's grasp while they attempted to give him a sedative shot. The price for the victory was too steep.

"Ms. Mado." If it was another low ranking officer here to celebrate their victory over Aogiri, she was going to have to ask him to shut up. She couldn't deal with any more of the "congratulations" and the "we did it guys!" going around the office when there were still people in critical condition in the infirmary ward. Akira did not doubt for a second that her superiors felt the same way.

The blonde threw a sharp glare over her shoulder. "What?"

"It's First Class Investigator Amon." Akira tensed and heart thumped uncomfortably in her chest.

"What about him?"

"Amon lost an arm to Centipede. We managed to staunch the bleeding but…he will be placed in the asylum ward for monitoring and rehabilitation on his psychological condition." Akira's blood ran cold. They were going to lock up Amon? She clenched her fists.

"Locked up? We're a team! What am I supposed to do for a partner?"

"Please, Ms. Mado!" The assistant held up shaking hands in surrender. His face was pallid and covered in a cold sweat. Oh, Akira noted, anyone would feel that way if they were lifted straight off the ground. The man stumbled the moment Akira released his shirt collar.

"Fix it." She couldn't lose another important person. CCG's mortality rates were high and no one was invincible no matter the reputation attributed to them. Akira learned that lesson from her father's death. She steeled her mind and body for the inevitable. Why was she refusing it now?

"I can't!"

"Why not?!"

"This type of procedure takes years to produce results! A person's mind is very delicate. Even without the damage to his mind, Amon will never be a field investigator again! His entire arm was chopped off to the shoulder!"

Akira's rage drained from her form, the finality his statement settling in her mind. Amon would never be an investigator again. "Yes. Of course." Akira backed off to give both her and the man space after their respective outbursts. Her demeanor had been shameful. "Am I allowed to see him now?"

"Yes. We're busy so the doctors limited visitation to ten minutes." The man held the clipboard against his waist in a firm grasp. The slight movement drew Mado's eyes downward. "It's not easy for me either, Ms. Mado. Amon is my friend too." Was your friend, she wanted to bite out. Amon's mind was gone. All that is left is a raging lunatic in asylum ward.

"I need to go visit him." She bowed in customary gratitude. "If you'll excuse me." Heels clicking on the tile, Akira turned toward the white-washed room and opened the glass door separating her from the wails of the injured, dying, and mentally compromised. The fluorescent lighting cast a sickly pallor on everything it touched. Telling herself to be strong, the female investigator approached Amon with a face set in trained disinterest.

"Akira…?" The blonde nodded and kneelt beside Amon's bed. "Do you see them, Akira?"

"What are you talking about sir?" Amon had PTSD, enough to warrant mental isolation and white padded rooms. It was one of the worst cases she had seen in her time with the CCG. Her stare roamed down the neatly bandaged shoulder covered in fresh blood seeping out of the sutured wound. Don't think about his arm, she scolded herself.

"You don't see them?"

"Who?"

"The ghosts. The spirits. I saw Centipede. He was crying." Great, now the insane investigator was seeing the spirits of dead ghouls. The blonde decided to humor Amon.

"Alright. What did these spirits do, sir?"

Amon's eyes widened in terror. "They were everywhere. Centipede was one of them. They destroyed everything. It wasn't natural . Those things weren't natural . Not a ghoul, not a human. The woman said it was evil. Can't be saved. I was suffocating. Breaking. Cracking. They died but centipede is still out there. Waiting. He's waiting for someone to save him." Scratched, bruised hands snatched Akira's hands. "Death gods. They're real. Said something was wrong with the energy."

"Sir, please stop." The weary investigator wrenched her hands away and pushed Amon back down into the bed. "None of that happened. I need you to be calm."

"No. She said the monsters are coming."

Akira massaged her temple in an attempt to halt an incoming headache. "Okay," continuing to go along with his fantasies she said, "what are the monsters called?"

"Hollows. Ghouls are hollows and hollows are ghouls but they aren't the same thing. She said so." Akira nodded and gave Amon's hand a reassuring pat. The investigator had no clue what he was talking about but it had to mean something. Things would eventually become clearer when the psychologists gave him therapy to unscramble his memories.

"Sir, why don't you get some rest. We'll try to find out whoever she is."

"Right." Amon nodded and Akira felt the old investigator came back if only for a moment. "I should probably rest." Amon reclined with a sigh as the sedatives began their work. The man was asleep in under a minute. The blonde stood and briskly exited the infirmary. The stress was catching up to her. The sound of rustling clothing caught her attention. The assistant from before was staring at her with wide eyes.

"I heard the conversation."

"Isn't there anything…?"

"No," the man shook his head solemnly, "but, if it helps, the higher-ups told me to pass on a message. The Screaming Banshee is having a severe case of murders reported after customers have been seen leaving the building."

"A typical club case?"

"Yes except one of the reports lead some of the first-class investigators to believe it is the work of a member of Aogiri Tree."

Akira clenched her fists. "Aogiri?!"

"Yes," the man held out a file of papers, "here is a list of possible subjects. Are you going to take the case?"

The second class investigator swiped the manila folder from the assistant's hands and leafed through the pictures of known members. Her eyes flicked up from the papers. What was such a low-ranking member doing with these documents? Normally, her superiors would come see her instead of sending an underling. "Why did they send you instead of coming to me themselves?"

The man gave a polite bow of apology, "they were busy with the consequences of the Anteiku raid, sir."

"Very well. Tell them I'll hit up a few other club cases while I'm at it." This case was good for a small drink. Ghouls were easy enough to lure out with faked weakness. She would have revenge.

The assistant watched her leave. "That went as well as I expected…"

Looking back, it had been a bad idea to go charging head first into the nest of ghouls. Kanou's lab should have thoroughly beaten the idea out of her head (after all, Aogiri still lurked around every corner) so Akira could only blame herself for this predicament. The ghoul had been too easy to pick out of the crowd with that hungry gaze; the bait had been all too tempting. She should have ignored the obvious trap. Teens picked up nasty habits from their peers—such as faking —in order to fit in or feel the adrenaline rush of rebellion. Naturally, Akira had gone to the club to find a predator of a different nature.

The drink warmed her body, the pleasant tingle spreading through her hands, and alleviated the stress brought on by the unfortunate news earlier that day. In her hand was a simple beer; it was cheap and did the job. The masses of wriggling bodies hid more than the unruly teenagers—it hid predators of the non-human variety as well. The tinkled in the glass as she pulled it up to take another sip, a ruse to hide her tracking gaze from ghoul. She followed its path around the room, going from woman to woman, searching for its favorite human delicacy.

This was bad. The ghoul was maneuvering through the crowd with determination, his eyes locked on her position. Tsuzuki Yamamoto, a lower-ranked member of Aogiri and one she was capable of handling on her own, had been on her hit list since the large-scale assault on Aogiri's base. The knot in her throat constricted, her mind had flashed back to the infirmary ward, and the rage swelled in her chest. No, this was the perfect chance to eliminate the pest running around. If she got rid of him, there is one less ghoul who could create the same incident.

Akira's eyes followed the ghoul's movement from her peripheral vision as he slid into the seat beside her. The smile adorning his face appeared friendly enough but she knew better. Picking out a ghoul's fake expressions (though they tended to be amazing actors) was easy enough. "Hey there! I couldn't help but notice your stares from across the room."

"I wasn't looking at you."

"Right and your eyes were following the invisible ghost right behind me. I'm not stupid. Hey!" The man waved the bartender over with a grin. Resting his face in his hand, elbow leaning on the countertop, he silently watched Akira slowly drank her beer.

"What would you like?" The bartender, who was previously ignored, interrupted the ghoul.

"Hm," The ghoul rubbed his chin in thought. Ghouls had an unnaturally high metabolism—alcohol had little effect on them. "I'll just get what she's having."

"Asshole. Do you plan on stalking me all night?"

"Somebody's getting drunk already it seems."

Akira punched the man (rather hard, she would gleefully admit later) on the shoulder. "Shut up!" The ghoul scooted over as much as he could, and Akira smirked as the bartender sat the glass down in front of the tense ghoul. "Things aren't going to go your way, bastard."

"You…can't hold alcohol well can you?" Akira ignored the question, instead focused on figuring out the song lyrics—dirty song lyrics.

"What if I can't? Doesn' matter to you."

"It matters because you already look like you can't stand up! What percentage is that? How many have you had?"

Akira held the glass to her puzzled face, swirling the liquid gently, "No clue." She tugged sharply at the ghoul's arm sleeve. "It's your fault I drank more than I wanted too so you are going to help me home."

"What?! How is that my fault?"

Akira slammed an open palm against the counter top, "I just told you!" Akira crossed her arms and leaned on the bar with a grimace. "So?"

"Ugh, fine. I'm assuming you want something else from the way you were watching me earlier but this is alright too I guess." Akira smirked and slid out of her seat on slightly wobbly legs.

The ghoul reached out—"Don't touch me!"—and promptly retracted his hand. Sporting a similar grimace to Akira, the ghoul followed behind the woman hesitantly. Yamamoto had no idea where the troublesome woman was taking him, but the entire charade better be worth it. Being a rude, distrustful bitch to suddenly asking him to walk her back? There was something up with this woman. His instincts were screaming at him to attack, to devour, the woman.

Had he finally netted a dove? That would mean the plan was free to move forward. If not…well, he got an easy meal from her stupidity. There was a flash and his kagune collided with steel.

"I knew it," Tsuzuki declared, "you were a dove. Something was off about you. Following me around the room and then spurning my advances before suddenly asking me to walk you back? You're a terrible actor. I bet you aren't even drunk."

"Tipsy, perhaps, but not drunk. It was just enough to throw off your suspicion, Aogiri son of a bitch."

"Foul mouthed too." Tsuzuki smirked and slid a hand to his back pocket.

"No you don't!" The quinque blade lashed out but Tsuzuki was faster. He whipped out a pistol—no, Akira realized, a flare gun! Shit, it was a trap! The gun went off, shooting a trail of grey smoke high into the air.

"The signal? Finally! We were wondering when you were going to catch a dove." A band of ghouls, two male and one female, rushed out the alleyway with their kagunes readied.

The only female spoke up, "Put down the weapon and maybe we'll let you live a little longer. We need you for something you see, Akira Mado."

Akira eyes narrowed, "…you know me?"

"Why wouldn't I? Your father," she sneered, "killed mine. Unfortunately, Rabbit killed him so I'm left with the second best option—his daughter." Akira, disinterest plain on her face, lashed out with her bikaku whip, Amatsu. "Whoa!" The ghoul casually blocked the bikaku whip with a rinkaku. The appendages snaking out from her lower back quickly switched to offense, lunging at her with enough speed to crack the pavement.

"Rinkaku…this could be a problem." There was a swish of air. Twisting her body, she barely managed to block the heavy attack from the original ghoul, Tsuzuki. Blood red eyes, complimented by black sclera, filled with blood lust eyed the dove. The lance-like kokaku kagune collided with the dagger side of Amatsu.

A spiked tail shot out and Akira froze, unable to move or be impaled by Tsuzuki and the woman, as the appendage lacerated and pinned her arms to her body. She had let her guard down! Falling to the floor, Akira attempted to twist out of the steel muscle keeping her bound. The bikaku male leered over her, "now now, no need for that. Go to sleep for a bit."

Akira's eyes widened as warmth flooded her system. His kagune could produce narcotics! "What…?" She attempted to keep her eyes open. The edges of her vision darkened. The ghouls converged on her. Unable to fight, Akira's head slumped onto the concrete and she passed out.

Akira unsuccessfully tried to get her hands out the ropes holding her hostage. It seemed they were keeping her in an old warehouse. Boxes, covered in dust and spider webs, were stacked haphazardly around her to make a temporary prison cell. There were two other chairs—two other potential prisoners—sitting beside her own. Her current situation would change once they got where they were going. Once the ghouls reached whatever served as their current headquarters, she would be thrown into a cold, steel cell for torture and interrogation. It was a terrifying prospect.

"Do you think she knows anything important?"

"Why wouldn't she? She's a dove that worked with Amon. Ya know, the guy who killed Tatara. She's got to be somewhat important. Besides, did you forget who her father is?" The female ghoul lifted her face and examined the woman closely.

"I don't see what's so great about her."

"It doesn't matter if she is great or not," the male who knocked Akira out said. "All that matters is that we bring her to the executives."

"Tch." The female wrenched Akira's head to the side as she stepped away. "Why can't we ju-"

CLANG!

"What was that?"

The bikaku male spoke up, "an intruder."The Aogiri members nodded at each other and jumped over the crate prison to intercept whoever was on the other side. Akira tensed, preparing to tear her skin up to escape, when screams broke the silence. The screams lasted a moment before dying as quickly as they had begun. A wet squelching noise and the soft tap of shoes were all she could hear. Whoever took down the ghouls so effortlessly was slowly moving toward her position.

The boxes tumbled to the ground, revealing a handsome brunette with glasses perched on his face. His demeanor appeared friendly but the blood spattered on his face suggested otherwise. The damned smile on his face was obviously his default expression as he calmly approached her.

"Akira Mado, I presume?"

Akira tensed as the fingers tugged at the knots holding her captive. "Yes. Who are you?"

"Me?" The ropes fell to the ground, "I am benefactor of CCG."

Akira rubbed her sore wrists, "Benefactor?"

"I fund the research on ghouls. They are an intriguing specimen of evolution."

"Ho?" Akira turned to her rescuer. "No one else knew I had been kidnapped which means you were keeping tabs on me. What do you want from me, Mr. Benefactor?"

"Straight to the point I see. It's simple. I want you to oversee a pet project of mine: Sasaki Haise."

Who's that?" Akira said, "I've never heard of anyone by that name."

Aizen smirked and held out Amatsu. "You'll see. All you have to do is accept." Akira snatched the weapon from his palm, distrust shining in her eyes.

"You'll kill me otherwise…am I right?"

"Smart girl. Do you accept?"

Akira held out her hand, "I don't have a choice."

Aizen shook her hand, his friendly expression not reaching his eyes. "Excellent. I will inform Arima and the chairman."

On the other side of the city, dark shadows were beginning to stir. A young girl shrieked as she stumbled across the dusty alley way to escape the creature following her. This wasn't real…! It couldn't! Weren't things supposed to be a paradise when you passed on? The giant skull-faced monstrosity crept out of its corner hiding spot.

"Come here little plus!"

"NO!" The child pushed off the ground with shaky legs. "LEAVE ME ALONE!" She only got a few steps, however, when her legs collapsed beneath her. The hand's talons inched toward the child. She held up her hands in a vain attempt to stop the hand.

A squelching noise interrupted the girl's frantic thoughts and she peeked up at empty space. "This is bad," the voice, male, sighed in annoyance, "instant hollowfication is making everything a pain to deal with!" The figure turned but the light shrouded him in shadow and kept her from seeing the face of her savior.

The girl yelped as the hilt gently tapped her on the forehead. Surprise quickly turned to peace. In a flash of white light, a black butterfly replaced her tiny frame. The man watched the butterfly vanish along with the girl. "Where the heck are all these hollows coming from?" The shinigami sighed and sheathed his sword. "Captain Kurotsuchi is going to have a field day with this."

…

**A/N: Revisions took longer than I thought they would. I hope you guys enjoyed this (delayed) chapter! If you guys spot anything weird, let me know. I dissected the original version with cut and paste so there may be something wacky missed during revision.**


	3. Chapter 3

The chambers of the First Division loomed over him—a giant monster threatening to engulf his form. Just his luck that Mayuri wanted _him_, of all people, to make the one to report to the Head Captain, all because Captain Kurotsuchi was too busy trying to gain control of his spectacular blunder. Mayuri's line of thought followed along the pretense of "let my minions get killed and wait for that old man Yamamoto to calm down."

Figures Rin and Hiyosu would throw Akon to the wolves while they made some ridiculous excuse as to why they couldn't be the ones to report. Those two were just as involved in this as he was! Nemu was a no-go as well—Mayuri locked her away in the room with him for his secret experiment. It wasn't too unusual for the captain to turn off the bugs in his office to keep his research hidden. Akon suspected he even had a replicated brain hidden somewhere in the room.

"Akon," Akon tore his gaze away from the meeting hall to see Ukitake waving, "Captain Kurotsuchi isn't coming?"

Akon shook his head. "No. The captain said there was an emergency that required his attention and Nemu is trying to find the source in the world of the living. Rin is trying to track down a missing Soul Visualization Machine and Hiyosu made some other ridiculous excuse…"

"What about the hell butterflies?"

"Have you ever tried explaining intricate details to someone like Kenpachi?"

"Then, another captain or lieutenant perhaps would be suitable?"

Akon sighed and gingerly rubbed his temple, "Only people who understand the monitors should speak about it. That means Division Twelve members only."

"Is it really that bad?"

"Yes." A thought struck Akon, "wait, will you be the one letting me in?"

Ukitake smiled, softly, and nodded. Akon returned the gesture with a smile of his own. With Ukitake on his side, he might not get maimed by Head Captain Yamamoto for the stupidity of his division. "Yes," Ukitake said, "normally we don't let anyone below lieutenant in but Captain Kurotsuchi informed me ahead of schedule that his third seat would be delivering the report. But really, I wonder what Kurotsuchi is doing…do you have any idea Akon?"

Akon shrugged and turned back to the entrance of the first division. "Things have been strange in the division the past month. Whatever the captain is up to in there, I have zero clues as to what it is."

"I see," Ukitake said. The vice-president didn't think it sounded cheerful at all—a bit worried even—but decided it was none of his business. All he wanted to do was to get his portion of the meeting over with and leave and let the rest of the captains deal with the final decisions. "Akon, are you coming?"

"Huh?" The captain waved at him over near the gate. "Oh, right. Sorry about that Captain Ukitake!"

"No worries," Ukitake responded, the smile slipping from his face. "I'm sure everything will be fine."

…**.**

"Be quiet!" The familiar rapping of the head captain's cane easily brought the miffed group of shinigami to order. "Normally, all problems within a division are handled by the captain." Akon winced as all eyes settled back on his presence. "However, I've been made aware of an emergency by Captain Kurotsuchi and, as such, has dispatched Lieutenant Nemu to handle the problem."

"But Captain Yamamoto," Byakuya spoke up, "this breaks with normal procedure."

"I understand your concerns Captain Kuchiki, but this matter is of the utmost importance. Despite his seating, Akon still holds the rank of vice-president. This fact alone should be enough to permit him to speak for his captain." Yamamoto dismissed the noble's concerns with the casual statement. "Third seat of the Twelfth Division and Vice-president of Research and Development let us hear the details of the problem."

Akon nodded and cleared his throat. If his luck turned around today, there would only need to be one explanation. Pulling the clipboard from beneath his lab coat, he flipped through the loose papers with ease. "I'll get straight to the point…there have been reports of non-ghoul souls undergoing a form of instant hollowification. A ghoul's soul, on the other hand, begins to hollowfy from the moment they are born to ghoul parents—similar to Quincy's except it manifests as a need for human flesh alone. Upon death, it takes a matter of minutes for the soul, whose sparse chain was kept intact by the body, to hollowfy and thus the term 'instant hollowfication.' As you all know, human souls do not hollowfy upon death but take years to turn."

"It's possible that tis' is entirely natural," Gin responded, "after all, teh Research an' Development Team is new."

"Or perhaps something like _that_ happened again," Hitsugaya responded, voice laced with suspicion.

"Captain Hitsugaya," Aizen broke in, "are you implying something?"

Hitsugaya's diverted his attention to the silver-haired captain situated across the room smiling a bit too wide. "We are all aware that there is a snake among us, Captain Aizen."

"Really? I think we are all good people here unless you take into account the absent Captain Kurotsuchi. How convenient that he has something prevents him from attending this meeting. "

"That would be true unless you figure in the fact that he would be the first suspect in these types of situations. Kurotsuchi is crazy not suicidal."

Kenpachi watched, irritated from the sidelines as the banter started "Well it seems pretty freakin' obvious that _something_ is wrong so why don't we all stop gabbing and got on with this meeting?"

"Unfortunately, the most we have been able to uncover is that someone has been introducing the genes of ghouls into regular humans and thus corrupting pure souls."

"If I may interrupt," Aizen said, "are you saying that we have another incident similar to the vizards on our hands?"

"That is exactly what I am saying." Akon flipped to the next sheet of data. "Now, as for the reason for the captain's disappearance…" Akon quickly scanned the page with his eyes. "It almost went unnoticed, but there was an incident where the souls of several high-class ghouls went missing. Our captain is currently trying to uncover the source of this disturbance."

"Missing? How the hell do souls just go missing?"

"Tch. It just means that the twelfth division is more stupid than I thought."

"Kenpachi shut up. I'm sure there is a good reason they couldn't find them."

"Oh? How do you explain the fuck up with that spirit thing?"

"At least use proper terminology if you are going to interrupt the meeting." Akon grunted from the side. People like Kenpachi only made Akon's job harder.

"QUIET!" All heads turned toward the exasperated elderly captain. "If you would stop acting like children, Akon could finish explaining the details."

Akon bowed and continued, "The reason this ranks high on the list of concerns is this matter has lead us to a larger trail. It is estimated at least a thousand souls have vanished over the past twenty years, all of which were ranked as A-ghouls or higher during their life time. The hollows they turned into just vanished."

"I see. What of the souls of the half-ghouls?"

"No change. We ran a double-check on vitals using the soul trackers placed on. Everything cleared as usual."

_At least whatever has been causing the mysterious disappearance of souls has not affected those creatures,_ Yamamoto thought. Lately, there had been various strange occurrences that were easily dismissible as a random act of nature; however, his doubts were being casually flung back into the open once more. Someone was messing with the balance of souls with no trail left behind to follow. "Captain Aizen."

"Yes, head captain?"

"You will be stationed in the world of the living to investigate the cause of this disturbance. You may take whoever you wish, even another captain, if you deem the potential threat high enough."

Aizen gave a bow of confirmation, a smirk etched beneath the shadows hiding his face. Gin remained impassive, the unnaturally wide smile plastered in its usual close-mouthed grin.

_It's all goin' accordin' ta plan. Isn't that right,_ Captain Aizen?

….

Kaneki's instincts screamed at him to run from the glasses wearing shinigami freak. The man oozed with confidence found only in someone who has never lost a fight—an experience Kaneki did not want to repeat after his failure against Arima. The bespectacled man casually stood beneath the pale glow of the moonlight, beckoning to the hollow with an open palm.

"Join me, Kaneki Ken." The hollow glared at the annoyance in front of him yet fidgeted beneath the man's unwavering gaze. He had to choose his words carefully.

"Why should I?"

"Are you not upset about the hand fate has given you? To be one of them—a human—only to be struck down like a beast?" Kaneki leered at the man but otherwise said nothing. The instincts in the back of his head were roaring too loudly to possible attack this man out of spite. "What if I were to tell you…that hollows have a special trait unique to them alone?"

"A unique trait?" Kaneki circled around the man's small form, "what kind of power?"

"A power, when combined with a living body, forces the being to grow exponentially. All I need from you, my dear hollow, is a sample of your spiritual energy. I will give you full control over whatever comes out of this little experiment."

"Will I get what I lost? Can I kill Arima?"

"Actually, I am going to ask that you wait on your revenge."

Kaneki hissed at the man, form tense with anger. "Why?"

"Kishou is a valuable asset to my cause currently—even he doesn't yet know it; however, I assure you that it will make your 'revenge' all that much better."

Kaneki shifted on the balls of his feet. There was an aching need to kill that man—it almost consumed his mind at certain points. The hollow knew he was missing something—something he held dear which Arima stole from him; the CCG stole it from him. The logical side of his mind (or what little remained—he had never been an idiot) told him that Aizen held the key players under his thumb. If this man didn't kill him, someone else would discretely take his place—and on his orders at that. No, the person before Kaneki is a master manipulator.

"I accept. So, what would be my first task?"

"I already had an assistant of mine collect a sample of your spiritual energy, therefore I want you to take this device." Aizen pulled a small metallic, gray device. Kaneki held out a hand and the cool lump of metal landed softly in his palm. "This is the original device. I have made several copies that I am having my other subordinates place at key locations around the city."

Kaneki rolled the device around in his hand with curiosity. Holding it up to his centipede-like mask, he peered at the innocuous device. The lump of metal did not appear to hold any power but a small button let on to something possibly more sinister—it was in this man's nature to do such a thing. "What does it do?"

"Something very interesting." He said, "I want you to place this particular device within the CCG prison."

Kaneki lowered the device to stare at the man, "wouldn't the headquarters be better?"

"My dear hollow, this is where the fun starts. This device will enable all the living things in the prison to tap into their spiritual power. Chaos will undoubtedly ensue and draw the Soul Society's attention to a sudden surge of spiritually aware living beings. "

Kaneki grinned beneath his mask. "Both ghouls and humans alike will 'hallucinate' and force the Soul Society to step in as hollows are drawn to the sudden surge in reiatsu emitted by those in Cochlea. Anyone who could possibly interfere will have their hands full taking advantage or investigating the phenomenon. " This man was an undeniable genius…a bastard with a god complex but no less magnificent.

"Exactly."

"However…"

"Yes? What is it Kaneki?"

Kaneki shifted slightly. An uncomfortable feeling was ripping at his chest, urging him onwards towards a goal. Anteiku was gone so that wasn't it. "The person…Touka Kirishima…I want to search for this person."

"Yes…how would you like to keep an eye on an experiment of mine? It will be worth it. I promise."

"Will it let me see Touka? I must see her. I have to." Kaneki shook his head of the frantic thoughts rushing about in his mind. Protectprocte—"I have to protect her. She's mine." _No one else can touch that person!_

"Calm yourself, Kaneki. You will get your chance. All you need to do is follow my orders."

"But…"

"It will be fine. Touka is alive and well." Regret and reluctance chewed away at him; he relented with hesitation and took the metal device the man retrieved from his pocket. "Place the device somewhere on your body. It will release a constant stream of dense spirit particles that awakens the sight so be careful of humans if you're trying to avoid them. They will be able to see you. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"And are you going to watch over the experiment I give you?"

"Yes."

Aizen made an affirmative noise, hand resting on his chin in thought. He did not drop his air of superiority even in deep thought. "You do not need to wear that device for more than a day. Just plant it inside Cochlea later then come see me at CCG. You will know who I am." Aizen gave a brief, mocking wave and vanished in a single flash step.

Kaneki fingered the device in the palm of his hand. With this, could he tell Touka he was sorry? Would he be able to return to that he which he lost? Sure, he looked different with his hollowfied centipede form—he truly embodied the moniker 'Centipede' now—but they would accept him back right? Right?

_Liar_.

No, Arima stole that from him didn't he?

_REVENGE. _

Yes, it was time to destroy the safety of the CCG's precious prison. The hollow would keep using the shinigami towards his own goals until he became powerful enough to take what he wanted. Kaneki had no clue what Aizen's plans entailed but he would use them to his advantage as well.

_He would take everything back. _

…

Touka sat on the rooftop of her new sanctuary gazing at the starless sky, legs curled up against her chest, and arms wrapping around her knees. "Kaneki…you'll come back won't you?"

Somewhere across the city, grotesque figures began to move across the street.

A shadow raised its head and roared.

….

**A/N:** **Um, I've had this written for a while but I've been waiting on my beta. For now it is unbeta'ed. University caught up with me and then everything came to a screeching halt. But, here's the chapter. I hope things make sense because everything right now sets up for the humongous troubles to start popping up in the next chapters. (Is hoping the characters are not OOC)**


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